Mounting system for muzzle devices and firearms

ABSTRACT

A system for connecting an accessory to a firearm having a muzzle device has a plurality of swinging arms pivotally connected to a body. The swinging arms releasably engage a portion of the muzzle device. The swinging arms are operable for movement between a closed position and open position. The swinging arms have a retention feature sized to receive a rear portion of the muzzle device when the swinging arms are in the closed position. The swinging arms have a locking mechanism that releasably secures them together to prevent movement of the swinging arms to the open position, so that the accessory may be removed or installed when in the open position, and secured when in the closed position. A bore of the body may closely receive at least a portion of the muzzle device.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to firearms, and more particularly tofacilities for mounting on the muzzle a device, such as a soundsuppressor, muzzle brake, recoil compensator, or blank firing adapter.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is often desirable to mount removable devices at the muzzle of afirearm. A sound suppressor or silencer reduces the sound of thedischarge of a firearm; a muzzle brake or compensator reduces recoilforces; a blank firing adapter is useful for training and for launchingof grenades and rescue devices.

A conventional muzzle mounted accessory may be internally threaded toengage a threaded end of a firearm barrel. This has the disadvantage ofbeing slow to mount and dismount, which is a serious concern in militaryand law enforcement contexts. Other prior art mounts provide quickerdisconnection, but suffer other disadvantages such as inadequaterepeatable precision of alignment (which generates shooting inaccuracy),complexity and cost of manufacture, and durability. Other prior artsystems require modification of the firearm, and proprietary adaptercomponents. Because military regulations prohibit personnel frommodifying their weapons, prior art devices that require replacement ofmuzzle-mounted components with proprietary adapters are consideredunsuitable for many military applications.

A number of patents have been granted for mounting muzzle devices, suchas sound suppressors, to firearms. Various approaches also exist in thepracticed prior art. However, there are a number of problems with priorart patents and existing practiced prior art. These problems includeunwanted modifications to the barrel, the undesirable requirement of aproprietary flash hider, and the associated costs and time due to theinstallation of a proprietary flash hider. One of the major problems isthat existing systems require modifications to the host firearm. Thesemodifications either mean the machining of the existing barrel toaccommodate the mounting system, or the installation of proprietaryflash hiders that allow for the attachment of muzzle devices such assound suppressors.

To minimize these problems, there have been a number of differentapproaches that have been used in past years. One approach has been tospecially design the host firearm to allow for attachment of a soundsuppressor. This adds an unwanted burden at the stage of designing thefirearm, and requires that the firearm manufacturer be cognizant of apossible requirement to attach a sound suppressor to the firearm as partof the design criteria.

Another approach has been to design the mounting system to allowmounting to the existing flash hider on the standard rifle, and U.S.Pat. No. 5,773,746 (Vaden) is an example of this approach. This patentdiscloses a mounting system that allows for the quick attachment anddetachment of a sound suppressor to the M4/M16A2 series of rifles thatare equipped with a standard flash hider or compensator. The Vadenpatent features the use of 3 pivoting fingers that are moved intoposition and locked onto the rear of the flash hider via the use of arotating collar. A combination of left and right hand threads in therotating collar and body of the mount meant that the collar was simplyand quickly rotated one way to lock and the other way to unlock thesound suppressor from the flash hider.

Another example of a mounting system utilizing an existing flash hideron a standard rifle is U.S. Patent Application 2007/0095198 A1 (Dater etal.). This patent application discloses a body with a bore sized toclosely receive an enlarged muzzle portion of a firearm. The body has astop to limit the insertion depth of the muzzle. The Dater patentfeatures a gate that is received by the body for movement along the pathperpendicular to the bore axis. The gate has a recessed area sized toreceive the enlarged muzzle portion. A spring generates axial force toretain the muzzle portion within the recessed area. Compression of thespring enables movement of the gate to shift between an open and closedposition, so that the accessory may be removed or installed when in theopen position, and secured when in the closed position.

G.B. Patent 2,242,476 (Felton) discloses a mounting system that allows asound suppressor or muzzle device to be fitted to a wider variety ofmilitary rifles, which may be fitted with different length flash hidersthat are conventionally threaded for attachment to a threaded muzzle.However, the design utilized a U-shaped cutout in a locking collar toaccommodate the various flash hiders, and this collar was then securedto the rear of the flash hider by tightening up the suppressor (andsubsequently the collar to the sound suppressor) against the front endof the flash hider. Screwing down the suppressor generates compressionof the flash hider.

Another approach used by Knight Armament Company and Brugger & Thonet,AG, is the use of a U-shaped locking gate that fits onto a proprietaryflash hider and which is held under spring tension to the flash hidervia an enlarged BFA (Blank Firing Adapter) groove that is machined intothe exterior of the flash hider near the rear end of the flash hider. Toensure that the suppressor did not detach due to spring failure, asecondary retention system was added to the mount to ensure that thesuppressor stayed attached to the host rifle if spring failure occurred.

The approach of installing a proprietary attachment is also typified byU.S. Pat. No. 6,948,415 (Matthews et al) where the sound suppressor isattached and secured to a one-piece adapter and compensator thatextended back over the barrel. The suppressor attached to an annularridge on the adapter through the use of a rotating ring having anopening that is concentric when open and eccentric when closed, thuslocking the sound suppressor to the adapter and compensator. This methodof attachment is also in the existing practiced prior art as used byBrugger & Thomet (B&T) of Switzerland with the mounting system used withthe Rotex-II 5.56 mm sound suppressor. Rather than being attached to anannular ridge on an adapter and compensator as per the Matthews patent,the mounting system of the Rotex-II was secured to a standard M4/M16A2compensator and secured the sound suppressor against the rear of thestandard M4/M16A2 compensator.

All of the above systems have significant disadvantages in terms ofcost, reliability, durability, accuracy, and/or combinations of these,at least for certain applications and needs. None of them attachdirectly to a standard M4/M16A2 compensator without any modification tothe host weapon. All of the abovementioned mounting systems eitherrequire a separate compensator or the removal of the standard crushwasher for attachment.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a mounting systemthat provides a quick, secure and mechanically strong mounting systemfor muzzle devices such as sound suppressors, muzzle brakes, recoilcompensators and BFAs (Blank Firing Adapters) to a firearm, that securesthe muzzle device to the firearm regardless of vibrations from firing ofthe rifle, and allows for the quick and easy removal of the muzzledevice from the firearm.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides an improved mounting system, andovercomes the above-mentioned disadvantages and drawbacks of the priorart. As such, the general purpose of the present invention, which willbe described subsequently in greater detail, is to provide an improvedmounting system that has all the advantages of the prior art mentionedabove.

To attain this, the preferred embodiment of the present inventionessentially comprises a system for connecting an accessory to a firearmhaving a muzzle device has a plurality of swinging arms pivotallyconnected to a body. The swinging arms releasably engage a portion ofthe muzzle device. The swinging arms are operable for movement between aclosed position and open position. The swinging arms have a retentionfeature sized to receive a rear portion of the muzzle device when theswinging arms are in the closed position. The swinging arms have alocking mechanism that releasably secures them together to preventmovement of the swinging arms to the open position, so that theaccessory may be removed or installed when in the open position, andsecured when in the closed position. A bore of the body may closelyreceive at least a portion of the muzzle device. There are, of course,additional features of the invention that will be described hereinafterand which will form the subject matter of the claims attached.

There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more importantfeatures of the invention in order that the detailed description thereofthat follows may be better understood and in order that the presentcontribution to the art may be better appreciated.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of the current embodiment of themounting system constructed in accordance with the principles of thepresent invention installed on the gun barrel of a rifle.

FIG. 2 is a rear exploded perspective view of the current embodiment ofthe mounting system of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a front exploded perspective view of the current embodiment ofthe mounting system of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a rear perspective view of the current embodiment of themounting system of the present invention in a first stage ofinstallation.

FIG. 5 is a rear perspective view of the current embodiment of themounting system of the present invention in an installed condition.

FIG. 6 is a sectional side view of the current embodiment of themounting system of the present invention in an installed condition.

The same reference numerals refer to the same parts throughout thevarious figures.

DESCRIPTION OF THE CURRENT EMBODIMENT

A preferred embodiment of the mounting system of the present inventionis shown and generally designated by the reference numeral 10.

FIG. 1 illustrates the improved mounting system 10 of the presentinvention installed on a rifle 12. More particularly, the rifle 12 has abarrel 14. The rifle has a rear end 20, and the barrel has a forwardmuzzle end 22. At the muzzle end is a permanently or temporarily mountedstandard A2 compensator 34 (shown in FIGS. 2 and 3).

In the application illustrated in the current embodiment, a soundsuppressor 32 is prepared for installation at the muzzle. The soundsuppressor 32 includes a tubular body 130 and the mounting system 10.The body 130 has an elongated forward portion 30 having an expansionchamber and including baffles and other functional elements. The frontend 26 of the mounting system is removably attached to the rear portion28 of the body to form the sound suppressor. The rear end 24 of themounting system is removably connected to the A2 compensator and servesas a connection facility to provide a secure, reliable, repeatable, andrigid connection between the sound suppressor and the rifle. Themounting system attaches directly to the A2 compensator withoutrequiring any modification of the host weapon.

FIGS. 2 and 3 show the A2 compensator 34 and the components of themounting system 10. The A2 compensator is a generally hollow cylindricalform defining a standard ½ inch×28 threads per inch threaded bore 104 atits rear 46 and a ring-shaped opening 58 at its front 48. The top 110 ofthe sidewall 52 of the A2 compensator is solid, while the bottom 112 ofthe sidewall has a plurality of vents 60 divided by prongs 56. Twocircumferential grooves 54 are present towards the rear of the sidewallimmediately behind the top solid portion. The sides of the rear of thesidewall immediately behind the grooves define two wrenchable flats 46.

The A2 compensator is a standard recoil compensator designed to reducemuzzle rise during firing. However, the concepts of the preferredembodiment may be applied for attachment to any of a wide range ofsuppressor types having certain characteristics, as will be discussedbelow. The A2 compensator reduces the visible signature of the burninggases that exit the rifle's muzzle when it is fired by directing thegases through the top vents machined into the A2 compensator. This isuseful from a tactical standpoint because it prevents the muzzle fromrising upwards and reduces muzzle flash generated by the burning powder.

The main portion of the mounting system is an entry cap 44 that is agenerally hollow cylindrical form defining a central bore 108. The entrycap has a rim 126 with a forward externally threaded portion 90 and arear face 132. The threaded portion 90 engages the rear portion 28 ofthe sound suppressor body 130. The top 114 of the rim defines twoshoulder bolt holes 92. The bore has smooth walls and is sized toclosely receive the sidewall of the flash suppressor. A flange 96protrudes from the rear face 132 of the entry cap, and a groove 128 isdefined between the flange and the rear face of the rim. The top 114 ofthe front of the entry cap terminates in an arcuate protrusion 104. Thearcuate protrusion is sized to fit closely over and align with the solidportion of the sidewall of the A2 compensator. The bottom 116 of thefront of the entry cap terminates in an arcuate prong 106. The arcuateprong is sized to fit closely over and align with one of the prongspresent on the bottom of the A2 compensator so as to avoid blocking anyof the vents.

A left locking arm 38 and a right locking arm 36 are generallysemi-cylindrical bodies each having a shoulder bolt hole 42 at theirtops 118 and 120. The locking arms operate to provide a secure andreleasable connection between the suppressor and the rifle. The bottom124 of the right locking arm defines a roll pin hole 84. The bottoms 122and 124 of the left locking arm and right locking arm each define slots76 and 78 (shown in FIG. 4). The front 26 of the tops 118 and 120 of thelocking arms each define a relief cut 102. The relief cut 102 is sizedto closely receive the entry cap's flange. The depth of the relief cutsdefines how wide the locking arms are permitted to open. The interiorsurfaces 64 of the locking arms each define a groove 94 in their forwardportion. The grooves 94 are sized to closely receive the entry cap'sflange. The left locking arm and the right locking arm each define aridge 70 and 72 that protrudes inwards. The ridges are sized to closelyfit the rearmost groove 54 on the A2 compensator. The left locking arm38 and the right locking arm 36 have a flattened portion of theirinterior surface at 66 and 68. The flattened portions are sized toengage the wrenchable flats on the A2 compensator.

A 10-32 socket head cap screw 78 has external threads 100 thatthreadedly engage a threaded bore 98 in the bottom 88 of a knurl nut 80.The knurl nut 80 is a generally hollow cylindrical form with an open top86 that communicates with the threaded bore. A 1/16 inch diameter×0.500inches long roll pin 82 and two 0.187 inch×0.375 inch shoulder bolts 40complete the mounting system 10.

In the current embodiment the components of the mounting system areformed of steel or other hard and durable material that can providerepeated and close precision engagement with a steel muzzle element,such as the A2 compensator 34.

FIG. 4 shows the current embodiment in a condition in which it isprepared for installation, in a rotated orientation to illustrate majorfeatures. The threaded bore 104 of the flash suppressor is screwed ontothe muzzle portion of the gun barrel 14 using the wrenchable flats 50,and the rear portion 28 of the sound suppressor is screwed onto thethreaded portion 90 of the entry cap. The knurl nut 80 has beenunscrewed sufficiently to permit the socket head cap screw 78 to pivotwithin the slot 74 in the right locking arm about the roll pin 82installed in the roll pin hole 84. In this condition, the knurl nut isnot retained by the sides of the slot 76 in the left locking arm,thereby permitting the locking arms to separate from one another oncethe socket head cap screw has pivoted the knurl nut out of the way. Theleft locking arm 38 and the right locking arm 36 are depicted in theiropen position in which they have subsequently pivoted about the shoulderbolts 40 installed in their shoulder bolt holes 42 and the shoulder boltholes 92 in the rim 126. The entry cap has been slid over the front 48of the A2 compensator so that the arcuate protrusion 104 is aligned withthe top solid portion of the A2 compensator and the arcuate prong 106 isaligned with one of the prongs on the bottom of the flash suppressor.The A2 compensator is positioned within the bore 108 of the entry cap sothat the A2 compensator's rearmost groove is aligned with the ridges 70and 72 on the interior surfaces of the locking arms.

In FIGS. 5 and 6, the locking arms 38 and 36 have been closed so thattheir flattened portions 66 and 68 press against the flats 50 on the A2compensator. The ridges 70 and 72 engage with the rearmost groove 54 onthe A2 compensator. The flange 96 on the entry cap 44 engages with thegrooves 94 in the locking arms. The socket head cap screw 78 has beenpivoted about the roll pin 82 so that the knurl nut 80 is positionedabove the slot 76 in the left locking arm. The knurl nut 80 hassubsequently been screwed downward so that it is retained by the sidesof the slot 76 in left locking arm, thereby creating a clamping actionby the locking arms around the flange of the entry cap and the rear 46of the A2 compensator.

While the locking arms are locked closed by the knurl nut, the mountingsystem cannot slide axially because of the engagement of the lockingarms' ridges with the flash suppressor's groove. The mounting systemalso cannot rotate because of the engagement of the locking arms'flattened portions with the A2 compensator's flats. The combined effectsof the locking arms' ridges and flattened portions also ensure that thesound suppressor is positively axially registered with the gun barrel.

Removal or =installation of the suppressor from the rifle muzzle followsthe reverse process. The knurl nut must be unscrewed sufficiently toclear the sides of the slot 76 and left locking arm and pivoted out ofthe way so that the locking arms may be pivoted to their open position.Only then can the A2 compensator be withdrawn from the bore of the entrycap.

By fixing the orientation of the sound suppressor with respect to thegun barrel using the mounting system, the accuracy of the rifle with thesound suppressor installed is assured despite multiple cycles ofinstallation and removal of the sound suppressor. In order for themounting system to be practical, a single sight-in session when thesound suppressor is installed on the rifle for the first time must beall that is required to ensure the rifle's accuracy.

In the context of the specification, the terms “rear” and “rearward” and“front” and “forward” have the following definitions: “rear” or“rearward” means in the direction towards the muzzle of the firearmwhile “front” or “forward” means it is in the direction away from themuzzle of the firearm; “longitudinal” means in the direction of or inparallel with the longitudinal axis of the barrel while “transverse”means in a direction across the longitudinal direction.

In use, a muzzle device such as an A2 compensator is attached to thebarrel of a firearm. The A2 compensator has a cylindrical bore thataligns with the bore of the barrel of a firearm. A muzzle device,preferably a sound suppressor, is positioned over the A2 compensator ina concentric and axial alignment with the A2 compensator and the barrelof the firearm. The sound suppressor has a preferably round body withsound suppression structures that are well known in the art. At thefront of the sound suppressor is a front end cap with an openingconcentric to the bore of the firearm, while at the rear of the soundsuppressor, a mounting system for attachment of the sound suppressor tothe firearm is provided.

The mounting system may be secured to the sound suppressor by well-knownmeans such as threading, or may be permanently attached to thesuppressor tube. While the embodiments described herein describe the useof threads for attachment to the sound suppressor, the use of threads isnot exclusive and other methods of attachment such as welding orchemical adhesives may be used if so desired, or a combination of thesemethods may be used.

When attaching the sound suppressor onto the flash suppressor andfirearm barrel, the knurl nut is unscrewed and the locking arms arelifted in a vertical plane by rotating them about the shoulder bolts sothe locking arms protrude as far as possible. This ensures that theentry cap can be placed on the A2 compensator and then moved rearwardswithout impediment from the locking arms.

The entry cap is placed on the A2 compensator in a rearward movement byinserting the A2 compensator between the locking arms and into the entrycap. The A2 compensator is received by the bore of the entry cap. Therearward longitudinal movement continues until the rearmost groove ofthe A2 compensator is aligned with the ridges protruding inwards fromthe interior surfaces of the locking arms.

At this stage, the locking arms are then fully pivoted until they arestopped by the contacting of their flattened portions with the A2compensator's flats. The socket head cap screw is then pivoted on theroll pin to align the knurl nut with the slot in the left locking arm,and the knurl nut is then tightened down into the slot in the leftlocking arm. Once the attachment has been completed, the soundsuppressor is secured to the A2 compensator in both longitudinal androtational axes.

To remove the suppressor from the A2 compensator, the knurl nut is firstunscrewed to release it from the slot in the left locking arm. Once thesocket head cap screw is pivoted to remove the knurl nut from the slotin the left locking arm, the locking arms are pivoted open until theycan no longer be pivoted further. The entry cap is then removed from theA2 compensator in a forward longitudinal motion until it is removedcompletely from the A2 compensator.

The mounting system thus described provides for a quick and easy, yetreliable and mechanically strong attachment system for muzzle devices,such as sound suppressors, to be attached to the barrel of a firearmthat has an A2 compensator positioned on the forward portion of thefirearm barrel.

While a current embodiment of mounting system has been described indetail, it should be apparent that modifications and variations theretoare possible, all of which fall within the true spirit and scope of theinvention. With respect to the above description then, it is to berealized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of theinvention, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form,function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readilyapparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalentrelationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in thespecification are intended to be encompassed by the present invention.For example, while a sound suppressor is described as the preferredmuzzle device that is attached to the mounting system disclosed herein,other muzzle devices such as muzzle brakes, recoil compensators and BFAs(Blank Firing Adapters) may also use the mounting system for attachmentto an A2 compensator. Therefore, the foregoing is considered asillustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, sincenumerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilledin the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exactconstruction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, allsuitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, fallingwithin the scope of the invention.

1. A facility for connection to a firearm with a barrel extending todefine a forward direction, the barrel having a muzzle device, thefacility comprising: a body; a plurality of swinging arms pivotallyconnected to the body; the swinging arms releasably engaging a portionof the muzzle device; the swinging arms being operable for movementbetween a closed position and an open position; the swinging arms eachhaving opposing internal surfaces; the internal surfaces each defining aretention feature sized to engage the muzzle device when the swingingarms are in the closed position; and the swinging arms having a lockingmechanism that releasably secures the swinging arms together to preventmovement of the swinging arms to the open position.
 2. The facility ofclaim 1 wherein the retention feature includes a flattened portion thatengages a wrenchable flat on the rear portion of the muzzle device. 3.The facility of claim 1 wherein the retention feature includes acircumferential ridge that engages a groove on the rear portion of themuzzle device.
 4. The facility of claim 1 wherein the body defines abore.
 5. The facility of claim 4 wherein the bore of the body closelyreceives at least a portion of the muzzle device.
 6. The facility ofclaim 4 wherein the body includes a functional device having a bulletpassage, the functional device selected from the group of devicesincluding sound suppressors, muzzle brakes, adapters, and launchingapparatus.
 7. The facility of claim 1 wherein the locking mechanismcomprises: a screw having a secured end and a free end with the securedend pivotally attached to one of the swinging arms; a nut threadedlyattached to the free end of the screw the swinging arms each defining aslot in one end; one of the slots receiving the secured end of thescrew; one of the slots receiving the free end of the screw when theswinging arms are in the closed position; and the nut being securedwithin the slot receiving the free end of the screw when the swingingarms are in the closed position.
 8. The facility of claim 1 wherein themuzzle device has a flat surface, and at least one of the arms has anengagement surface operable to contact the flat surface when the arm isin the closed position, such that the facility is prevented fromrotating with respect to the muzzle device.
 9. The facility of claim 1wherein the body includes a tube extending forward of the facility. 10.The facility of claim 1 wherein the arms are generally semi-cylindricalbodies.
 11. A method of removably securing a device to a firearm barrelhaving a muzzle device with a free end extending in a forward direction,comprising the steps: providing a body having a bore sized to closelyreceive the muzzle device; providing a plurality of swinging armsattached to the body, the swinging arms being operable for movementbetween a closed position and an open position; providing a lockingmechanism that releasably secures the swinging arms together to preventmovement of the swinging arms to the open position; unlocking thelocking mechanism; moving the swinging arms to the open position;inserting the free end of the muzzle device into the bore; moving thebody in a rearward direction until a rear portion of the muzzle deviceis aligned with a retention feature defined by an internal surface oneach of the swinging arms; moving the swinging arms to the closedposition, thereby engaging the retention features with the rear portionof the muzzle device; and locking the locking mechanism, such that theswinging arms are secured in the closed position.
 12. The method ofclaim 11 wherein the locking mechanism includes a screw having a securedend and a free end with the secured end pivotally attached to one of theswinging arms and a nut threadedly attached to the free end of thescrew, wherein one of the swinging arms defines a slot, and wherein thestep of unlocking the locking mechanism includes rotating the nutcounterclockwise to disengage the nut from the slot to permit movementof the swinging arms to the open position.
 13. The method of claim 11wherein the locking mechanism includes a screw having a secured end anda free end with the secured end pivotally attached to one of theswinging arms and a nut threadedly attached to the free end of thescrew, wherein one of the swinging arms defines a slot, and wherein thestep of locking the locking mechanism includes rotating the nutclockwise to secure the nut within the slot to prevent movement of theswinging arms to the open position.